Central Catholic graduate Evan Kennedy's pinch two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth proved critical in Purdue's 7-6 victory over Oral Roberts.

Nathan Baird, Journal & Courier

WEST LAFAYETTE — When the blast Evan Kennedy had waited four years for cleared Alexander Field's right-center field wall Tuesday night, the Purdue senior chuckled through his home run trot.

Not at the circumstances. Kennedy's pinch-two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning gave the Boilermakers three runs worth of breathing room against Oral Roberts. They needed all three to escape with a 7-6 victory.

Purdue senior designated hitter Evan Kennedy talks with coach Mark Wasikowski in the eighth inning of Tuesday's game against Oral Roberts. Kennedy's ensuing two-run home run stood up as the difference in a 7-6 victory.

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After homering for the first time as a Boilermaker in his 183rd at-bat, Kennedy laughed while picturing the scene likely awaiting beyond home plate. Typically, a team-wide reception greets any player who simply moves a runner into scoring position.

As Kennedy descended the dugout steps, his teammates sat silently in their seats. After a few moments of this time-honored cold shoulder, they swarmed him en mass — hollering and back-slapping and celebrating the end of a perplexing drought.

"You come out and watch his BP — it's stupid," fellow senior Alec Olund said of Kennedy's batting practice displays. "Line drive after line drive. Backspin after backspin. We always make jokes, 'When are you going to hit the soccer field?

"We all know. We've all seen it. When he finally did it tonight, that's why everyone was so pumped for him. We know how long he's been clawing at the door and how close he has been."

Kennedy has always made his name with his bat. He batted .470 with eight home runs as a Central Catholic senior and Indiana All-Star in 2014. He homered regularly with the Lafayette Aviators last summer, including what stood up as the game-winner in the Prospect League championship game.

Yet Kennedy struggled to earn at-bats as a freshman and sophomore while Purdue scuffled to 29 total victories. Last season, right as he began to carve out a regular role, he suffered a season-ending wrist injury in late March.

This season he's half of the Boilermakers' designated hitter platoon. Nick Evarts starts against lefties, such as Oral Roberts' Taylor Varmell on Tuesday. When opponents call for a righty from the bullpen, Kennedy grabs a bat.

Which is how he came to face reliever Grant Townsend in the eighth with Milo Beam at first. Purdue coach Mark Wasikowski came down the third-base line for a conference and told Kennedy he could have one swing, then he had to bunt. Kennedy swung away, fouling a pitch off.

Then he failed to get the bunt down. ("I'm probably not the best bunter in the world," he confessed.) After Beam stole second base, Kennedy would have settled for a ground ball to the right side to put Beam at third with one out.

Instead, he got out in front of a Townsend changeup, and the ball kept drifting and drifting until the Boilermakers had their first pinch-hit home run since 2012. Sean McHugh's shot that day, against Indiana State, came in the bottom of the ninth and helped Purdue win the final game played at Lambert Field.

Prior to Tuesday, that had also been Purdue's last home game involving two 30-win teams.

Kennedy started slow this season. He said he was trying to do too much — trying too hard to hit that elusive home run every time up.

Now he's batting .400 over his last seven games as part of a bottom of the order that has turned into a consistent source of production. Olund said Kennedy's .237 season average does not reflect how hard he consistently hits the ball.

"It's not too late now," Wasikowski said. "I've seen guys like Evan Kennedy show up during the postseason and all of a sudden put us on his back and carry us."

D1baseball.com included Purdue among its "first five out" in Tuesday's projection of the NCAA Tournament's field of 64. Same for Michigan, the Boilermakers' opponent this week at Alexander Field.

Purdue can clinch second place with two wins over the Wolveirnes. It can also share the title with Minnesota with a sweep and at least two losses by the Golden Gophers.

Oral Roberts, however, did show up in that speculative field of 64. Tuesday's victory carried greater significance than most mid-week non-conference games. it kept the Boilermakers in the conversation for only the third postseason berth in program history regardless of their performance at next week's Big Ten Tournament in Omaha, Nebraska.

Purdue senior designated hitter laughs as he rounds the bases following his two-run home run in the ...more

Purdue senior designated hitter laughs as he rounds the bases following his two-run home run in the eighth inning of a 7-6 victory over Oral Roberts on Tuesday night.

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The victory wouldn't have been possible, in retrospect, without Kennedy's long ball. At the time it gave Purdue a 7-4 lead. Yet a two-out error by Evan Warden opened the door for two Oral Roberts runs against Boilermaker closer Ross Learnard.

But Learnard coaxed an Andrew Pace groundout to another Central Catholic product, Tyler Powers, to secure his 12th save.

"We probably don't win those games three years ago, last year, two years ago," Kennedy said. "It really does come from the coaching staff. We have the confidence that trickles down from them to the seniors and on down to the freshmen."

Kennedy plans to enroll in Indiana's McKinney School of Law in the fall. He and six senior teammates opened the evening with cap and gown over their baseball uniforms. They received their diplomas from Purdue President Mitch Daniels, having missed the proper graduation ceremony for last weekend's road trip to Ohio State.

Kennedy's teammates joked he hit zero home runs as a Purdue player and one as an alum. He ate it up. Back when Kennedy played only 18 games as a freshman, and went 1-for-11 as a sophomore, one mindset sustained him.

Purdue senior designated hitter Evan Kennedy receives his diploma from President Mitch Daniels prior to Tuesday's game against Oral Roberts. Kennedy's pinch two-run home run stood up as the decisive hit in the Boilermakers' 7-6 victory.

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"It was all about trying to have as much fun as I could. — trying to make baseball as fun as it can be," Kennedy said.

Kennedy made it fun for Purdue on Tuesday, and possibly kept the door open for more fun down the road.